Winter Hale
by Daliesque
Summary: Nova Winter and her sister Amariya have always been close, but when they find themselves thrown into opposite ends of an ancient supernatural feud, can their sisterly bond withstand the pressures of this new world? ... Twilight AU. Jasper x OC, Jacob x OC, Edward x Alice ... M for language.
1. Morning -- Nova

**Nova**

_Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep._  
_Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep._  
_SMACK._

"Ugh." Rolling over in my barely big enough bed, I reached out, smacked the nightstand next to me, and fumbled around for my phone. My fingers searched blindly, in the still dim light of morning, until I eventually touched the cool rubber of my phone-case. Squinting down at the too bright screen, I snoozed my alarm. Just five more minutes. Five more minutes of half-awake comfort, and I would force myself up, and out of my warm blanket cocoon. Mornings always came too early, especially on first days.

Yes, today was my first day at Forks High. My mother decided it would be _such_ a good idea to up and move at the end of my high school career. So, instead of finishing up, and graduating with all of my friends, all of my classmates, and people I'd grown up with, I'll be spending my senior year of high school with absolute strangers. _Lit_. As if being a new kid wasn't bad enough. Still, I was glad to leave the small town in New Hampshire I'd grown up in. Nothing ever happened there. Nothing at all, really. It was a neat, safe, tightly knit, _boring_ place to live. Not that the dreary, damp streets, and overcast skies of Forks, Washington had much more to offer. At very least, it was something _new._

Before I knew it, my alarm was ringing again. I quieted the foul thing, and swung my legs onto the floor. As I wiped the sleep out of my eyes, my mother knocked gently on my door, waiting a moment before opening it. "Nova, honey?" she called out gently. "Are you up?" It was still a bit too dark out to see properly, and I hadn't switched my light on yet.

"Yeah, ma. I'm up." I replied groggily. Reaching over to the nightstand, I felt around for my light switch. When I found it, I clicked the light on, eyes squinting again in protest of the harsh yellow light it cast. Once my room was illuminated, I gazed around warily. Everything was still new to me here. We'd only just arrived a week before, and I'd not really left the house, except to go with mom and sister to the grocery store. "Is Riya up yet?" I asked, looking up at my mother's face. She was so beautiful, even in the morning, much unlike me, who looked as if I'd been mauled by a bear. My hair fell, half out of it's messy bun, and splayed across my face.

Seeing my wild hair, mom chuckled, nodding before answering my question. "She's up." She laughed again when she saw me bolt out of bed, to beat my little sister into the bathroom. She barely had time to step to the side, before I barreled by her. I ran, full speed, down the hall, closing the bathroom door behind me, locking it just in time to hear my little sister open her bedroom door.

"God damn it Nova, I've gotta get ready!" My sister's squealed in protest, her voice higher, and airier than my own. Riya jiggled the handle, and kicked the door in protest when she found it to be locked. "Ugh, you're such a little shit." I could hear her laughing, and walking back to her room. She wasn't wrong about the little part, though. Even though Riya's only a sophomore, I'm only 5 foot 3 on a good day. She's two years younger, and three inches taller than I ever would be.

"Amariya Eden Winter, that mouth of yours!" I heard our mother scold her lightly. She really wasn't angry, but she hated it when Riya cussed in front of her. Hearing my sister's middle name always reminded me of how jealous I was of it. Nova alone was lame enough, but _Nova Grace_ _Winter_? Ugh. UGH. There's nothing _graceful _about me!

I ignored the rest of their conversation as I brushed my hair, and teeth. Throwing on some light makeup, I gave myself a once over, making sure I looked at least _decent_ before opening the bathroom door.

"All yours, Riri." I called out to my sister, as I headed back to my room to get changed. I heard her mumbled reply as I passed the threshold of my door, heading straight to the chair where I'd laid out my outfit the night before. Pulling on the ensemble, I headed to my floor length mirror to double check my appearance. Gazing at my reflection, I took in the outfit.

Black boots, black tights, black skirt that fell mid thigh, and black scoop neck, long sleeved shirt. I guess you could say, I had a style. I wasn't really "goth" per-say, I preferred the term "alternative." I tucked a stray piece of hair behind my ears, running my fingers through the black strands that fell straight past my shoulders, and chest. I hadn't realized my hair had gotten so long. I made a mental note to get a trim, and freshen up the thick streak of cobalt blue that I'd dyed on the right half of my head.

Once I was certain I looked presentable enough, I grabbed my coat and bag, (both black of _course_) and headed downstairs. Amariya was already munching on some toast when I entered the kitchen. If you didn't know us personally, you might have no idea that we were even remotely related, much less sisters. Riya's hair was a striking auburn, the kind of red that looked almost bronze in the right light. Deep, and beautiful. Her hair fell in loose curls, all the way down her back. If I had thought _my_ hair was long, her's was impossible. Like a waterfall of fire, cascading from her head. Her skin was pale, like mine, but somehow she'd inherited the slightly pink Irish glow from our father's side of the family. She resented it, being that she burned easily, and hated _anything_ related to our dad, and his side of our genes. Still, it made her green eyes look vibrant, and alive. Next to my pale blue ones, they might as well be emeralds.

Even our bodies were strikingly different. Riya was thin, and lithe, sporting subtle curves in all the right places. Her legs were long and toned, her arms graceful and languid. She looked like a model, or some sort of Celtic princess. I, on the other hand, was shorter, wider, and curvier than she. My legs were short and thick, and though they were toned enough, they were much softer than hers. My hips were wider, my chest was larger, everything was different. Even my hair didn't curl like hers did. Her clothes were colorful, and cute, feminine, and refined. I looked like I was about to attend a funeral. We couldn't be more different if we tried. (And we hadn't tried.)

"You okay, Novaline?" She called out to me, snapping her fingers in front of my face. I must have been lost in thought.

"Hmm? Yeah, yeah, I'm good. And don't call me Novaline, that's not my name." I grumbled, grabbing the other piece of toast from her plate, and taking a large bite before she could protest.

I heard her giggle, as she shrugged. "Yeah, but I know you hate it." I did hate it. Our father used to call me Novaline, when we were younger. It's what he had wanted to name me, but my mother refused. They settled on Nova, as a compromise.

"How sweet of you to remember." I rolled my eyes as I took another large bite, finishing off the toast and grabbing my keys. "Alright, let's get this over with." I grumbled, heading for the door. Riya wasn't far behind, stepping in line behind me as I opened the door. The sun had finally come up, though we couldn't see it, behind those signature Fork's clouds. It was _always_ like this, from what I'd heard. I didn't mind though, I wasn't overly fond of the sun. And that's not because of the whole dark and gloomy style I preferred, I just didn't like the heat, or the brightness, or the sunburn that peeled back to pale white and left irritating freckles on my skin.

Opening the door to my old, beat up black Honda Civic, I threw my bag and coat into the back seat, and started the car. Once Riya was in, I pulled up the GPS on my phone. I entered the address for Forks High, and pulled out of our driveway, heading toward what I'd hoped would be a quick, and painless day.

* * *

We had arrived at school early enough to head to the office, and get our schedules and a map of the campus. It wasn't very large, which hadn't at all surprised me. The population of Forks wasn't exactly booming. I was thankful, though, that the school was small enough. The less people, the less potential headaches.

Riya and I walked out of the office, finding place to sit, and compare schedules before the day began. We only shared one class all day, but I was still thankful to be able to know _someone_ in one of my classes. The whole school had lunch at the same time, which was odd to me, but taking into the account of the number of students attending, it made sense. Still, I didn't much like the idea of cramming everyone into the cafeteria all at once. That sounded like a major headache. Crowds and I weren't the best. My anxiety loved to show up anytime the headcount was higher than the number of fingers and toes I had.

"It'll be okay, Nov." Riya reached out and patted my arm gently. I hadn't said anything, but she was always really good at knowing where my head was at. "I'll be there with you, and eventually you'll have lots of friends. Don't sweat it, sis." She flashed a confident smile my way, and I felt my muscles unclench. I hadn't realized I was so tense.

"Yeah, you're right." I nodded, brushing aside my nervousness as best as I could. "I'll be fine! Besides, if anyone decides to fuck with me, I'll just tell them I'm a witch, or a vampire, or something." I wiggled my fingers, and made a scary face. Riya laughed brightly, and shook her head. She was used to my theatrical gestures, and weird antics.

"Well you certainly look the part, Elvira." she snorted, recoiling back when I reached out to smack her thigh. "Hey watch it! I bruise like a banana!" Ri's tone was playful, so I knew she wasn't mad. After a moment, she stood, looking down at her map. "Well, my first class is this way." she stretched out her arm, and pointed down the hall. "I've got Calculus. Snoooore." She rolled her eyes, and threw her backpack over her shoulder. "You gonna be okay getting to class by yourself, Nov?" she asked, auburn eyebrow quirking as she looked down at me.

"I'll be fine, Ri." I replied, standing up myself, and looking around. People had already begun to filter in, and there was a steady, low hum of conversation beginning to buzz around us. "I'll see you at lunch?" I asked, pulling my own bag onto my back, voice sounding a little too pathetic to my own ears. For a moment, I had felt like the younger sister. I hated that I was so prone to panic, when my sister was always cool as a cucumber.

"Yep yep! See you then!" she said cheerily, and tossed me a wave before skipping down the hall. I turned to look at my own map, and found the quickest route to my first class. Now all I had to do was actually get there, without getting hopelessly lost. I should have known that wasn't going to be the case.

I wandered around for what seemed like an eternity, face glued to my map, trying desperately to work out where in the hell I was in relation to the English class I was supposed to get to. I must've kept my face in the map a bit too long, because suddenly I felt like I had ran straight into a brick wall. I fell backward, straight onto my ass, clunking my arm off a locker next to me when I tried to brace myself.

"Son of a bit-" I grabbed my arm instinctively, nursing the pain, and stopped short before I could loudly cuss at whoever had bowled me over. Looking up, I blinked, words ripped straight out of my mouth, as my eyes fell upon an impossibly beautiful boy. He stood tall, bright gold eyes gazing down at me, pouted lips parted slightly, as if he too was surprised. His hair fell in honeyed curls, just past his dimpled chin. I had thought that I was pale, but _he_ was the color of ivory, skin flawlessly smooth. My heart jumped straight into my throat, stomach dropping into a pit. He was... he was perfect. I didn't think I had ever, _ever_ seen someone so God damn beautiful. My lips fell open, breath refusing to push into, or out of my lungs.

Time seemed to slow down, everything else blurring around me. I hadn't even noticed the other, taller boy standing off to the side of him. All I saw was this... this creature, this godly _creature_ above me. Our eyes locked, and I saw, just for a moment, his eyebrows knit together, his face twisted just slightly, as if he were afraid of something. As if he were _anxious_ about something. The next moment, his face was calm again, and I too felt a calmness spreading through me. The pain in my elbow was gone. The panic, and frustration that had risen up inside of me was gone. I was left in a blissfully calm daze. I don't know how long I had been staring up at him, before he spoke.

"I'm sorry miss." his voice floated out, slight hint of a southern drawl layered into the melodic nature of it. My ears perked slightly at the sound. "I had just rounded the corner, and didn't have time to move before you walked into me." He crouched down in front of me, picking up the map and schedule that had flown out of my hands when we collided. He offered them to me, and once I took them, kept his hand in place, as if to help me up.

I, still partially dazed, took his hand, and stood with him. I noted, somewhere in the back of my mind, that his skin was alarmingly cold. "T-thanks." I managed to get out, eyes still transfixed on his. Dropping my hand back at my side, I tucked my hair behind my ears, and finally looked away from him. "And I-I believe _you_ walked into me." I stuttered out in a sorry attempt at playful banter. I wasn't angry with him, of course.

His soft laughter made my ears perk up again, taking me a bit by surprise. I looked up at him once more, unable too look away any longer. "I do apologize, ma'am." he drawled again, lips curling into a perfect smile. His eyebrow quirked a bit, and I felt my heart flutter. God _damn._ He reached out his hand again, this time as a greeting. "I'm Jasper, by the way. Jasper Hale."

_Jasper Hale... Jasper Hale_. I repeated his name in my head a few times. It sounded warm in my ears, unlike his skin, when I took his hand again. "Nova Winter." I said softly, just now registering that there was someone else there with us. "Pleasure to crash into you." I said semi-sarcastically. It _had_ been a pleasure. I let my hand fall away, and made sure to balance myself, realizing my knees had gone slightly weak.

The boy next to him smirked to himself, as his eyes, also golden, flickered between us. He had been silent, until then. "Sorry about my brother, Miss Winter. He's not usually so clumsy." The other boy offered his hand to me, when I looked up at him. "I'm Edward Cullen." It wasn't until he said his name that I realized he too was incredibly handsome. His hair was much shorter than Jasper's, and not at all the same color. Edward's hair was a bronze tone, similar to Riya's, but not quite as intense. His lips were thinner, and face more angular. Though they both looked like something out of a magazine, they looked nothing alike, save their eyes. I slid my hand into his, shaking it politely. _Jesus, did these boys win the genetic lottery? Aside from their poor circulation, I suppose. They're like icicles._ I thought I saw Edward chuckle under his breath before letting go of his hand.

"Are you lost?" Jasper asked, as I returned my attention to him.

"Hopelessly so." I laughed, shrugging my shoulders and looking down at my schedule. I thought I noticed Jasper smile out of the corner of my eye. I chewed my lower lip, and looked at the map again. "I'm supposed to be heading to English 12, with Mr. Brighton." I looked back up at him, noticing that Edward was no longer standing next to him. "Woah, I didn't even hear him leave." I mumbled, mostly to myself.

Jasper let out another soft chuckle, eyes darting down the hall for a moment, as he readjusted the bag on his shoulder. "I'm headin' that way myself. I can walk you, if you like?" His eyes snapped back to mine, and I felt butterflies swimming in my stomach. I swear I saw his eyes soften, and grow darker for a moment, but I brushed it off.

"Oh, really? Yes, please. I'm horrible with maps." I sighed, and waved the map theatrically.

His lips twisted into a smirk, and he took a step forward. "C'mon, it's this way." He began to walk forward, and I followed, trying desperately to keep up with him. When he noticed that my short legs were struggling, he slowed down a bit, matching pace with me. We walked silently for the rest of the way, and I had to fight the urge to stare at him while we went. I had already fallen on my ass once today, I didn't need to slam into anything, or anyone else.

When we reached the door of the classroom, the first bell rang. Stopping just outside the door, I turned to face him, gazing up at his eerily perfect features once more. I didn't really want to go to class anymore, I didn't want to look away from this mesmerizing man. "Well, Miss Winter, here you are." he said softly, lips curled up just at the ends, accenting the pout they possessed. I felt a soft sadness ache inside of me, not wanting to leave his side.

_What is wrong with you, Nova? You just met the guy! Get a grip!_ I chastised myself inwardly, biting the corner of my lip, before speaking. "Just Nova, if you would _Mr. Hale_." I narrowed my eyes at him, grinning as I playfully used his polite manner of speaking against him.

"Understood." he replied lightly, nodding his head as he spoke, a hint of returned playfulness in his tone. He stood a moment longer, eyes locked on mine, as if he were lost in a thought. I felt the sadness that had been there a moment before slip quietly away, as he turned his body away from me. Looking back one last time, he waved slightly, and headed toward his classroom.

"Jasper Hale." I said softly, barely a whisper, as I stood and watched him walk away. The second bell rang, snapping me out of my daze. Turning, I walked through the open door of the classroom, and found myself a seat in the back.

As I sat, I thought to myself, maybe, just _maybe _moving to Forks wouldn't be so bad after all.

* * *

**((Obligatory "Twilight does not belong to me" disclaimer. The only one I'll write, because _obviously it doesn't belong to me._))**

**Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think. I've never written Twilight fiction before, but I've been on a weird Twilight kick for a little while now. I read the books YEARS ago in middle/high school, and watched the movies when they came out, but hadn't thought about the series in years until a few months ago. I don't know what rekindled my interest in it, but here we are. Team Jasper all day, erry day, lol.**

**Anyway, I've got a vague story-line worked out in my head, but **_please_** leave me a review on what you think! I'll update as frequently as I can, but I've got a job, and a puppy, and real life garbage to deal with, haha. Thanks again! **


	2. Morning -- Jasper

**Jasper**

Morning came quickly, as it always did. It's funny, how time begins to mean less and less, the longer you're alive. If you could even call me _alive_ anymore. My heart had stopped beating long ago, yet my body refused to die. I tried not to linger on such thoughts, and most days I was successful in doing so. This particular morning, however, I found myself in a rather dark mindset. I suppose it was because today was my first day of senior year. _Again._ I lost count how many times I had graduated by this point. _Too many._

Normally, I kept myself emotionally neutral, keeping a tight reign on my ability to influence emotions of those around me. The constant barrage of other people's emotion often made that difficult, but over the years I'd learned to control myself. I'd had 140 or so years of practice at it, after all.

Trying my best to clear my head, in the back seat of Edward's silver Volvo, I watched the green and gray scenery of Forks, Washington whiz by the windows. Of course, I had no trouble keeping up with the verdant blur. It was nothing my keen vampire eyesight couldn't keep up with. Hell, I could have ran to school faster, but I supposed that might seem a bit odd to the other students. They'd probably wonder why one of the wealthiest families in all of Washington couldn't afford transportation for their adoptive children. Keeping up appearances was crucial to our survival. If we slipped up, we had to move again. If we were found out, The Volturi would have us executed. So, of _course_ we had to play the part.

I turned my gaze briefly toward Edward, and Alice. Their hands were entwined as they always were, Alice's thumb running over Edward's wrist lovingly. I could feel their love permeating the air in the car, surrounding and suffocating me. I really didn't mind much, though. I was entirely used to it. Between Emmett and Rosalie, Alice and Edward, and my adoptive parents, I was _constantly_ surrounded by the sticky-sweet emotion of love. An odd feeling to be presented with, when you'd never _fully _experienced it yourself.

When I was a newborn, I thought I had known what love was. I had foolishly thought the woman who turned me, Maria, had loved me. I thought that I had loved her in return. It wasn't until Alice had found me in that little diner in Philadelphia, and told me that I had love waiting for me elsewhere one day, with a new life and family, that I had realized I had been so horribly wrong. Alice couldn't show me what she _saw_ in her visions, like she could with Edward, but she could relay to me how she _felt._ How I felt. She could show me the emotions of anyone in her visions, because she would experience them herself. When she showed me how I had felt with the family we would find, and the love I would eventually have, I knew she was trustworthy. The good part about feeling everything people could feel, was that I could feel if they were being deceitful.

Briefly, I thought Alice and I might have been together, but she soon told me of the mate she had foreseen for herself, squashing that thought in it's infancy. It hadn't been awkward, thankfully. Alice and I had wandered for two years, in search of the family she saw for us, and in that time I grew to think of her as nothing more than a best friend, and sister. Still, as I watched her and Edward's affections, I felt a small pang of jealousy in my chest. It wasn't so much directed toward them, but rather inward at myself. Part of me, however small, wanted nothing more than to find someone to live out the rest of my unnaturally long life with. I was surrounded by family, and yet still somehow alone.

I heard Alice giggle softly, as she gingerly tucked a short lock of her raven hair behind her pointed ears, and watched Edward's lips curl into a smile. They hadn't spoken out loud, but they hadn't needed to. They were communicating in that special way only they could. Edward would make a decision, and Alice would see it, and reply with only her thoughts. Another small pang of jealousy twinged inside my chest, and I looked back out the window, as we pulled into the parking lot of Forks High. At least here I would be surrounded by many different emotions, and not have to bask in the saccharine love of my adoptive siblings.

Making my way at a dreadfully _human_ pace, I headed toward the entrance. The plus side of time meaning very little, meant that today would be over shortly. I relished in that small victory, as I stepped inside.

* * *

Edward had just returned from dropping Alice off at her first class of the day, when he joined my side. He and I shared American History first period. We had been laughing about the irony of the two of us taking such a class, when by all rights we could _teach_ it, when I turned the corner, and felt something bounce off of my chest. Turning, I looked down to see a small girl, dressed in all black smash her elbow off of a locker. Usually my reflexes are unmatched, but we had collided at just the right angle, that I had no time to correct myself before she slammed into me. I watched curiously, as her hand went up to soothe the pain in her elbow.

"Son of a bit-" she stopped short. As her face tilted up toward mine, my jaw fell slack, just slightly. For a moment, I had forgotten to pretend to breathe. I'd seen a great many faces in my time on this Earth, but none had quite struck me as hers did. Pale blue eyes flickered over my face, fanned by long dark lashes. Her skin was pale, even for a human's standards, and hair, dark as pitch, framed her heart shaped face gracefully. Her small, rounded nose twitched slightly, as her rose-petal lips opened to take a shaky breath.

It was then that I was hit with her emotions, like a wrecking ball. _Anxiousness. Doubt. Self loathing. Inadequacy. Loneliness. Sadness. Such profound sorrow, layered deeply, woven into her very soul. Pain. Mistrust. Panic. Panic. Panic._ My entire being was assaulted by all of her innermost emotions, so loud inside my head. If I were human, I would have had the wind knocked out of me. Usually feeling other's emotions was second nature to me, so much so that I barely registered that I was feeling it. I had become so keenly aware of who was feeling what, that I was usually a passenger to their moods, but this girl's emotion were bleeding into every corner of my being.

I pulled my eyebrows together, fighting to regain composure, and sent tendrils of warm calmness toward her. Watching her relax, I too felt relief. When I was certain we were both good, I finally spoke. "I'm sorry miss." I noticed the twitch of her ears upon hearing me. "I had just rounded the corner, and didn't have time to move before you walked into me."

I crouched before her, picking up the papers she'd dropped on the floor, and offering them to her. Once she had taken them, I offered her my hand, intent on helping her up. After a moment, she slid her hand into mine, warmth radiating into my palm as she did. "T-thanks." she spoke softly, her smooth alto voice dancing into my ears. Once she was on her feet, eyes never leaving mine, she returned her hand to her side, and I felt a tug of longing as the warmth of her skin disappeared.

_When was the last time I touched a human, without intent to kill them?_ I wondered idly. I watched as she broke her gaze from mine, and tucked the hair around her face behind her ears. I could take in the full scope of her beauty now, willing myself to keep my eyes on her face, and not the ivory skin of her neckline she had so innocently just exposed to me. "And I-I believe _you_ walked into me." she faltered slightly, small bubbles of anxiousness rippling throughout her.

I chuckled to myself at her remark, making sure to send another wave of calm toward her, before her panic rose again. "I do apologize ma'am." I replied, feeling my lips curve into a smirk of their own volition, cocking a playful eyebrow back at her. Normally I wasn't so candid with humans, but this one had somehow managed to drop part of the iron wall I kept around me. I heard, and felt her heart bubble slightly in her chest. In the pit of my stomach, I felt tiny, wispy butterflies that I knew belonged to her. If I had been able to blush, I would have. My palm twitched slightly, reminding me of the heat she had provided when we had touched. I found myself aching for the warmth of life once more, not wanting, but _needing_ to feel it again. Without much thought, I held out my hand to this strange human for the second time. "I'm Jasper, by the way. Jasper Hale." I offered her my name, something I very rarely did to anyone, human or otherwise.

"Nova Winter." she replied, sliding her palm against mine. I relished in the feeling, drinking in the comfort it provided my frigid form. "Pleasure to crash into you." she quipped, earning another honest smile from me. Her spunkiness was infectious, and would have convinced me of confidence, had I not seen her correct her imbalance, as her knees bowed slightly. It wasn't entirely her fault, a vampire is naturally alluring to a human. That's what made us such dangerous predators for them.

"Sorry about my brother, Miss Winter. He's not usually so clumsy." I turned to face Edward, having momentarily forgotten he had been with me. "I'm Edward Cullen." Watching, as he took Nova's hand, introducing himself, I noticed his lips twitch slightly as he snickered to himself. She must have thought something amusing. I made a mental note to ask him about it later.

As soon as she had dropped his hand, and returned her attention to me, Edward darted off, entirely unregistered by Nova's human eyes. Finally, I spoke again. "Are you lost?" I tilted my head slightly, though she likely wouldn't notice the tiny readjustment.

"Hopelessly so." she replied, letting out a small, frustrated giggle. The sound was like music to my trained ears, and I found myself griping the strap of my messenger bag a tad tighter, smiling unwillingly for the second time in as many minutes. _What is happening here?_ I wondered, as she looked down at her map, chewing idly on the corner of her lip. I felt my own lips twitch in response. _Get a hold of yourself, Jasper._

"I'm supposed to be heading to English 12, with Mr. Brighton." When her eyes met mine again, she finally realized Edward's absence. "Woah, I didn't even hear him leave." she said softly. Had I not had supernatural hearing, I doubt I would have picked it up. I laughed to myself, looking down the hall in the direction she should have been going.

Ignoring her comment about my brother, I readjusted my bag. "I'm headin' that way myself. I can walk you, if you like?" I _wasn't _heading that way at all. Hell, our classes weren't even on the same floor, but I found myself desperate to extend my interaction with this human. As my eyes found hers again, another wave of butterflies washed over me. The soft skin of her face deepened, as blood crept forward in her cheeks. A light pink blush had swept over her, and I felt my throat burn as the scent of her slammed into me. _Patchouli, sandalwood, sweet smoke, pomegranate, and the slightest hint of lilacs in full bloom._ I felt my eyes glaze over as hunger ripped through me, just for a moment. I corrected myself quickly, but could not _unsmell_ her. The perfume of her blood was heady and intoxicating. I prayed inwardly that I was far away, should she ever be injured. I scarce was sure I could hold myself back.

"Oh, really? Yes, please. I'm horrible with maps." Her voiced pulled me back to reality, as I swalled a mouthful of venom, throat sticking together with a dull ache.

As Nova waved the map in irritation, I was able to ground myself. I took a step forward, shaking my head in amusement. "C'mon, it's this way." I began to push myself forward, walking at what I deemed was an appropriate pace for a human of her size. I never could tell though, and was entirely unsurprised when I found she was struggling to keep up. Hanging back a bit, I adjusted my pace to meet hers, as any good gentleman would do. I was _dead_, but I wasn't a deadbeat.

We fell into a comfortable silence, and in no time, I had successfully guided her to her classroom. I turned to face her, finding that her piercing blue gaze was already upon me. "Well, Miss Winter, here you are." I said lightly, trying not to waver. Deep within me, I felt I slow spinning web, little strings of desire weaving in and out of my veins. I tried my very best to ignore them.

She bit the corner of her lip once more, and my already curled lips twitched slightly at the sight. She _really_ had to stop doing that, or I was likely to come unglued. "Just Nova, if you would _Mr. Hale._" Her eyes narrowed, a dazzling grin spreading across her delicate, full lips. Lips she liked to bite. Lips I had the urge to bite too. _No, Jasper!_ I berated myself inwardly.

"Understood." I nodded, trying to return the playfulness she'd just shown me. It was difficult to focus, difficult to pry myself away, when her eyes were so full of life. I felt a sadness seep into my chest, unsure exactly if it were completely hers, or partly my own. As it lingered, and licked at the place where my heart lay dormant, I pulled it away from her. I took it with me, tugging the dull threads of sorrow that ate away at her as tightly as I could, balling it up and placing it in my own chest.

Reluctantly, I turned myself away from her, and her azure eyes. Away from her blooming lips, and silken hair. Away from the scent of patchouli, and lilac, and sweet smoke. I looked back, just for a moment to wave, before I forced my legs to push me away from her. As I neared the end of the hall, I heard her speak my name, feeling something pulse throughout my being. Something I hadn't felt in a very, _very_ long time.

I pushed the door to the stairwell at the end of the hallway open, and let it close behind me. I stood, for a moment, before letting myself slide down the wall, to sit. Deep, down in the void of my stomach, I could feel a small ember of what had overwhelmed me a moment before. What had exploded throughout me as she had spoken my name. The softest, gleaming flicker of _hope._

I vowed, with every ounce of conviction I had, to protect this human. To do whatever it took to keep her safe. To ensure she was guarded, and happy, and so brilliantly alive as she was. I promised myself that I would never hurt her, nor would I let anyone else. Nova Winter, at all costs, would be spared the cruelties of this world.

In that stairwell, I swore to the stars above, and the Earth below, and by the soul I no longer had, that she would live a good life, even if that meant I could not be in it.

* * *

**Hello again, and thanks for reading! I found myself struggling to write Jasper's POV, but I think I did a semi-decent job. Let me know what you think of it. :)**

**I know a large part of this chapter was just Jasper's take on the events of the last chapter, but I really wanted to give insight to what he was feeling. The next chapter will be through Riya's eyes, so keep an eye out for it.**

**Thanks again!**


	3. Morning -- Amariya

**Amariya**

"It'll be okay, Nov." Reaching out, my hand found the left arm of my older sister. I knew, without need for words, that Nova was scared shitless. To anyone passing by, she would have seemed entirely fine, but I knew her well enough to know otherwise. The subtle way she chewed on her lower lip, the slight twitching of her fingers, the tension drawn across her forehead, the way she held her shoulders just a _little_ too high up; All of these things were dead giveaways to my sister's anxiety. "I'll be there with you, and eventually you'll have lots of friends. Don't sweat it, sis." I spoke gently to her, sending her my most reassuring smile. Nova had always been a big ol' ball of nerves. Then again, I couldn't really blame her. She had to witness things that I, thankfully, was spared. She had to live with that monster longer than I did, she had to carry the heavy burden of memories I no longer possessed.

"Yeah, you're right." Her reply was shaky, but I knew she was already feeling better. I did have a knack for cheering my sister up, even when her brain tried it's hardest to betray her. I watched her shoulders relax, and her eyebrows un-knit themselves. Nova's fingers were still twitching slightly, and she was still absentmindedly chewing her lip, but that was something she did so often, I doubt she even realized she was doing it.

My sister's anxiety never really went away, she was just so used to dealing with it, that even I sometimes forgot about her suffering. After a moment, she carried on, her signature smirk spreading across her face. "I'll be fine!" she nodded, "Besides, if anyone decides to fuck with me, I'll just tell them I'm a witch, or a vampire, or something." Her hands curled into little claws, as she wiggled her fingers at a cheesy attempt to be spooky.

This earned an honest laugh from me, her over-the-top gestures, and flamboyant expressions always made me giggle. When we were little, she used to tell me bedtime stories when I was scared, or couldn't sleep, and would act out what the characters were doing. It always calmed me down, and made me smile. I drank in the fond memories, before giving her a sarcastic reply. "Well you certainly look the part, Elvira." Snickering devilishly, I pulled back as she reached out to playfully smack my leg. "Hey watch it! I bruise like a banana!" I choked out through my laughter, rubbing the spot where she'd hit me dramatically. It hadn't _actually_ hurt, but this was our dynamic. This was how we always were.

After a few moments of familiar silence with my sister, I stood. Gathering my things, I peering down at the little map I'd been given. "Well, my first class is this way." I mumbled, pointing down the hall halfheartedly. "I've got Calculus. Snoooore." Rolling my eyes, I grabbed my backpack from the bench, and swung it around my shoulders. "You gonna be okay getting to class by yourself, Nov?"

"I'll be fine, Ri." Nova's reply came out confidently, but I knew better. My sister could get lost inside a paper bag; Her sense of direction was nothing short of _tragic_. Standing, she took another shaky breath as she slung her own bag onto her back, and turned to face me. "I'll see you at lunch?" she asked quietly, causing a small pang of pity to ripple through my chest. _God, she's so nervous._

I thought for a fleeting moment that I should offer her some guidance, but that thought quickly faded. I knew better than to challenge her, or demand to walk her to class. Nova hated it when people coddled her, and honestly, I couldn't blame her. I didn't have panic attacks like she did; I couldn't imagine going through all of that, just for people to treat you like damaged goods. Resisting my urge to shelter my sister, I turned, and sent her another thousand watt smile. "Yep yep! See you then!" I gave her one last look, searching for some subliminal sign that she wanted, or needed my help. Satisfied when I found no trace of panic, I turned, and headed toward the stairwell leading to the second floor.

My head was full of brightly spinning thoughts, as I made my way up the stairs. Unlike Nova, I _loved _meeting new people, and making new friends. The idea of new faces, and voices, and names, filled me with a brilliant excitement. As I headed toward my math class, I couldn't help but smile at all the fresh faces passing by me, trying my best to commit them all to memory. Even if I didn't have names to attach to them yet, I at least wanted to familiarize myself with as many as possible.

After a few minutes of smooth sailing, I found room 227. Calculus, with Mr. Green. Thankfully, I was quite early, and only 3 of the seats had been taken. I scanned the room quickly, eyes lingering on each present student for a moment. In the back of the class, sitting near the window, there were two boys. The one closest to the window had a soft face, and a head of dusty blonde hair, cropped tightly in the back, leaving just a bit more on top. His pale blue eyes were crinkled up at the ends, as he and the other boy laughed a little too loudly at whatever they were talking about. The boy next to him had thick black hair that fell to his chin, with swooping fringe that obscured his forehead. His round, doe-like eyes were a deep shade of brown, and held a cute sort of innocence. I took them in for a moment longer, before I turned my eyes toward a spectacled girl, sitting closer to the front, whose face was burred deeply into the pages of a novel. Loosely curled dark chocolate hair was pulled neatly into a ponytail, that fell just past her shoulders, short curtain bangs sitting just above her angled eyebrows.

The girl held a pen in her right hand, and had been chewing on the cap carelessly, when she seemed to feel my gaze. Looking up, she let the pen rest on the desk, her mahogany orbs meeting my emerald ones. I offered her a warm smile, and received one in return. "Hello!" her voice rang out sweetly, sharp eyebrows raising in excitement. I supposed it wasn't often that new students arrived at Forks High School. "You must be one of the Winter sisters!" she continued, confirming my suspicion, her excited tone catching the attention of the two boys in the back.

"Yes," I laughed softly, moving to sit at a vacant desk next to her, "I'm Amariya Winter." I replied, reaching across the gap between the desks to offer my hand. The boys in the back had gone silent, and were curiously watching the exchange.

The sweet girl leaned closer to me, compensating for the gap between us, and took my hand, giving it a soft shake. "I'm Angela Weber." Sending me another friendly smile, she continued, "Welcome to Forks!" Before I could reply, I heard a voice chime in from behind.

"I'm Mike! Mike Newton!" His zeal caused Angela to roll her eyes slightly. I gathered that they knew each other fairly well. I turned to see the blonde boy wearing a goofy grin, and waving enthusiastically. "And this is Eric." he continued, thumb pointed to his dark haired friend.

"Shut up, Mike!" he glared over to his friend, as if to say _'I can introduce myself.' _before returning his attention to me. "I'm Eric Yorkie." He smiled sheepishly, tossing me a shy wave.

"Amariya, but you can call me Riya." I repeated, offering a friendly nod to both of them. "Must be a _real _small town if you've already heard about us. New students in Forks must be big news then. My sister will absolutely _hate_ that." I laughed softly, mostly too myself, as I tried to imagine Nova's face once she realized we were going to be a hot topic for at least a few weeks.

"Pretty much," Angela nodded slightly, a small laugh of her own escaping her. "I can't even remember the last time anyone new came to Forks. It's not exactly an eventful place." Scrunching her face up a bit, she shrugged.

"Pfft, I'll say." Mike chirped in from the back, letting out an exasperated breath. "This place is a bummer. Nothing exciting _ever_ happens."

"That's not true," Eric interjected, "Remember two summers ago when Jack Dunn's bike got stolen?" A sarcastic roll of his eyes let me know he too thought this place was a bore.

I shook my head, letting out a soft chuckle. "Please, I grew up in New Hampshire." I shrugged my shoulders, "Boredom is an occupation there. Unless you're in one of the cities, it's a complete snore."

"New Hampshire? Isn't that like, in England or something?"

"That's why you flunked geography in 6th grade, Mike." Eric snorted, not bothering to correct his friend.

"It's in _New _England, bird brain." Angela rolled her eyes again, not bothering to look back at him.

"Right, so she's British? Cool!" Mike gushed, causing Eric to howl with laughter once again. I turned to face him, mouth parting slightly to reply, but was cut short. "Why don't you have an accent though?" I closed my mouth, and pursed my lips slightly, unsure if he was serious or not. Angela shot me a knowing look, and I covered my mouth to suppress a snicker. None of us bothered to correct him.

"Seriously though, unless you're into skiing, snowboarding, or farming, it might as well be Sleepy Hollow." I droned out, ignoring Mike and scrunching my nose. I wasn't a huge fan of sports. Or farms. Or anything messy.

"Ugh, relatable." Angela sighed, pushing her white-framed glasses further up her nose. "The most exciting place remotely close to Forks is La Push." She rolled her eyes, and I sent her a curious look, eyebrow arched as I waited for her to go on. "Oh, sorry, you don't know the geography yet. La Push is home to the Quileute reservation. It's a great spot for surfing, whale watching, ya know, beach stuff."

I felt a burst of nostalgia tug at my heart, my face lighting up. "Oh, I _love_ the beach! I haven't gotten to go in so long. Between school, and helping with the move, there just wasn't any time to. I grew up around the ocean though." I crooned, my hand unconsciously going to my heart. I was going to miss the Atlantic.

"You should come with us sometime!" I turned to see Mike's beaming face. "We go up pretty much every weekend. We've got a bunch of friends up there!" He nodded enthusiastically, puppy-dog eyes nearly pleading for me to agree to go. Glancing over to Eric, I caught the same earnest excitement. _Lord, they must really not meet new people often._ Their bright faces beamed somehow even brighter when I finally nodded in agreement.

"It's settled then," I turned to see Angela clasp her hands together, in a cute display of her own anticipation. "We're heading up this weekend, if you're free." I nodded to signal that I was. Taking a piece of paper from a spiral notebook on her desk, she grabbed the pen she had previously been nibbling on, and scrawled down her number, and eagerly handed the piece of paper to me. "That's my cell. Text me so I can save your number, and I'll remind you when we're going."

"Cool, will do!"I folded the piece of paper, and slid it into my back pocket. I turned toward the door as Mr. Green entered, and called for everyone to take their seats before beginning to take attendance. I was so absorbed in our conversation, I hadn't even noticed most of the other students had already filed in. I sent Angela another smile, and turned to face completely forward, as Mr. Green began writing some basic formulas on the board.

_3 new friends on the first day? Not bad, not bad at all! _A small smile played at the corners of my lips. I was already enjoying Forks. My eyes were on the board, left hand lazily jotting down the formulas Mr. Green was dictating, but I wasn't paying any real attention as he spoke. Thoughts of the three new friendly faces took up most of my concentration, along with the prospect of adventures in La Push, and potential for even _more_ friends there. _I'll have to ask Angela if Nova can come to La Push too, I'm sure they wont mind. I know she misses home. Maybe the beach will cheer her up?_

I found myself wondering how Nova was doing, and hoping she made it to class without too much difficulty. Furrowing my brow, I scolded myself for not walking her to class. Attempting to reaffirm my faith in my sister's ability to take care of herself, I tried to shrug the nagging feelings off. _The school isn't that big, I'm sure she made it there just fine. Besides, everyone here seems so nice. If she did get lost, I'm she found someone to help her out._

Nova may have been my older sister, but that didn't stop me from worrying about her as if I were the oldest one. Of course she had friends back home, but was often prone to isolation. Her anxiety made even simple things incredibly difficult sometimes. Every day was a toss up, with Nov. It was either a good day, or a bad one. Sometimes the good days would string together like daisy chains. She would smile brightly, and laugh freely. Sometimes the bad days formed an endless night. She would lock herself in her room, and refuse to come out. I still remember days where I had to plead with her to open the door, and let me in. There were times I even feared for her life, petrified that I would open her door and be greeted with a horror scene. And though she's gotten _so_ much better, some nights, I still poke my head into her room, just to be sure she's okay. There would always be a part of me that worried for her, a part that needed constant reassurance that I wouldn't lose my big sister. I couldn't stomach the thought of living without her.

_But what if she panics? Will she be okay? What if she starts hyperventilating? What if no one helps her? What if...? _Shaking my head, as if to clear the silly notions from my mind, I focused in on the whiteboard in front of me. Realizing I had fallen quite a bit behind, I quickly wrote down the formulas I had missed, before they were erased. _She's fine. _I willed myself to think positively, pushing any worries about Nova as far back as I possibly could. _Nova's a big girl. She's not going anywhere. _I consoled myself, steeling the ball of unease that had formed in the pit of my stomach._ No one's coming to take her away._

Somewhere, in the back of my skull, a memory tried desperately to flicker into my thoughts; Something far away, and blurred, and yet vaguely familiar. I didn't give it a chance to decode itself before I banished it back into the depths of my mind. The memory, I knew, was of something I didn't _want_ to remember. Not now. Not ever. _He's dead. He can't hurt us anymore. _Finally caught up with the notes, I let out a small sight of relief.

Before I knew it, the bell had rung. 45 minutes goes fast when you're lost in your head.

**Yeehawww, Chapter 3 is a go!**

**I feel like I write for HOURS and only yield like 3k words, which is exceedingly frustrating, but what can you do. *le shrug* ****Anyway, let me know what you think! ****I've got a lot of ideas for this story, and I'm so excited to bring it to life! :D**

**I sat down the other night and loosely mapped out a HUGE chunk of the plot. I've potentially got over 30 chapters worth of material already! Of course, my chapters so far sit between 2.5k to 3k words, which isn't very much. BUT I still think this is going to be quite a long story. Hope you don't mind, haha!****Thanks again for reading! **


	4. Lunch -- Nova

**Nova**

_Jasper Hale._ His name kept popping into my head throughout the morning, like a song lyric that refused to leave. _Jasper Hale._ It echoed, and reverberated within the walls of my skull, bouncing off of other thoughts, and sticking to them like glue. By the time the lunch bell rang, I had begun to question if it had even _happened_ at all. It all felt so surreal, like a fuzzy daydream. _Did I imagine him? I couldn't have, could I? Have I finally lost my God damn mind?_ These thoughts, invasive and unsure, only multiplied as I found myself moving toward the lunch room in a daze. I had no idea where I was going, but I figured if I just followed the majority, I'd make it there eventually.

I could barely even recall anything we'd gone over in any of my classes; My mind was too busy replaying the events of the morning on a continual loop, trying it's best to analyze every angle of what had happened. Every tiny movement, every glance, gesture, smile... It all needed to be broken down and rearranged inside my head. _His skin was so cold, but why? His brother, Edward was it? He had cold hands too. Jasper... His eyes were so deep, so golden, so sad. _Thoughts drifted in and out, like piano notes in a far away room. _Why did he walk me to class? Why was he so kind to me? And he didn't treat me like I was broken... Why do I feel like he looked so deeply into the depths of my fucking soul? _I only realized it had felt this way sometime around mid-morning, while I had made my way to my Biology class, thankfully not getting heinously lost in the process. While the scene was replayed for the umpteenth time, it dawned on me that Jasper had seemed keenly aware of what I needed, and how I felt. _What made him want to help me? _

_Don't overthink it, you're nothing special. He probably felt bad for you, shithead. Can you blame him? I mean, you're soooo fuckin' pathetic._ Ah, there it was. The siren song of my venomous self-loathing, accompanied with my good friend self-doubt. _He probably saw how miserable you looked, and thought he could get in his good deed for the day, by helping the broken girl. You're looking too far into it. You're crazy if you think someone like him would ever spare you a second glance. _I shook my head slightly, trying desperately to push away the thick vines of doubt and hatred of self that had begun to constrict me. _No, I'm not pathetic. I'm not crazy, it actually happened! I couldn't have dreamed this. I couldn't have just made this shit up! He is real, damn it!_

As I fought with myself, my legs carried me further down the hall, still unsure of where exactly I was heading. _Where is Riya? I need her right now._ I needed to tell my sister about the wonderful boy I'd met, and how he'd been so sweet, and how he'd treated me like a real person. I needed my sister to believe me, because I was having a hard time believing myself. Unsteady thoughts continued to wander in and out, weaving through my head. _Jasper Hale..._ Once again I had found my thoughts echoing his name. Remembering the sound of his voice, the cool of his skin, his smile...

_Fuck, shut up! Shut up already! Get your shit together Nova, what the hell is wrong with you?! _I was never one to obsess over boys, never one to cling to someone or something new. There were deep rooted seeds of mistrust sown within me, and most of the time I was wary of new people, especially men. So what had been so fucking special about Jasper God Damn Hale? _He's so beautiful._ No, that couldn't be it. I'd seen thousands of beautiful people in my 18 years of life. I saw beautiful people every day! I refused to believe that beauty alone had tethered me so strongly to this boy. For starters, I wasn't that shallow. _Will I see him in the cafeteria?_

My entire body had been thrown on auto-pilot, moving with the herd, like an animal in the wild. It had taken me a solid minute to even realize I had made it to the lunch room, before reality came crashing back down around me. The cafeteria was buzzing, alive with chatter and laughter. Scanning the room, I searched for someone familiar. _Anyone familiar._ Feeling thick anxiety starting to pool around my ankles, I made my way a bit further in, hoping to find Amariya before the toxic sludge of panic could creep it's way any higher up my body. I wasn't even remotely hungry, stomach already too tied up in knots to allow anything else inside of it. I could feel myself starting to detach, and pull away from reality, sinking deeper and deeper inside of myself as my mind began to dissociate. Dissociation was my most reliable defense mechanism, and unfortunately one I largely had no control over. The sounds of the lunch room began to fade away, farther and farther, and I felt myself being dragged into the cage inside my head.

I had almost completely left my body, and retreated into the bunker of my brain, when I heard a familiar voice chime brightly in my ears. "Nova? Novaaa?" Snapping violently back into reality, I realized my sister was standing in front of me, snapping her fingers gently to get my attention. She must have realized what was happening; She'd seen it so many times before. Bless her heart, it had worked though, and suddenly I was myself again. The world came back into clear view, too bright and too colorful.

"Ah, shit." I laughed, trying to play off my episode. I often did this, trying to make it seem less unusual, to myself and to others. "Sorry Ri, I was off in space somewhere." Leaning in, I wrapped my sister into a much needed hug, the tightness of my embrace betraying my cool exterior. Riya returned my embrace as she always did, pulling back after a moment, as she took my hand in hers. "How was your morning?" I asked smoothly, trying to change the subject, knowing full well that it never worked.

"Really great! I made a bunch of new friends." Nodding enthusiastically, she sent me a brief smile, before her face turned serious again. "Are you sure you're good, Nov? You haven't gone away like that in a while." Riya's eyebrows pulled together, her usually cheerful expression twisting slightly. I hated that I made her worry so much. "I don't know how long you were standing there before I noticed you." Her nose scrunched up a bit, and I could tell she felt guilty.

I shook my head, squeezing her hand gently to reassure her, trying to assuage her unnecessary guilt. "No, no, no, I'm fine, Ri! I wasn't completely gone yet." My reply came out softly, and I found myself glancing around to ensure no one else could hear. I didn't need the whole school privy to the fact I was a basket-case. At least, not yet. They'd figure it out eventually, everyone always did. I wouldn't mind, except for the fact that it meant people treated me like I was _broken_. There's nothing more insulting than getting looked at like you're a scared child, or being treated like fragile glass.

"Thank God." Her reply, too, came out soft spoken. Amariya was the only one in the whole world who knew what I dealt with every day. She was the only one who saw me in my lowest, messiest moments, and never once treated me like I was breakable. I loved her for that. I loved her already of course, but I loved the _shit_ out of her for that. Changing the subject, she tugged on my hand gently, pulling me along. "C'mon, I've got to introduce you to my new friends!"

Hand in hand with my sister, I couldn't help but search every corner I could see, desperately hoping, _praying_ I would catch the gaze of Jasper Hale. As she tugged me along, my eyes darted left and right, searching high and low for the hauntingly beautiful boy. When we finally arrived at the round table, full of faces I'd never seen, I had not managed to catch even a glimpse of him. _Maybe he's not here yet?_ My hopeful thought was interrupted by my sister's voice, once again. "Nova, this is Mike, Eric, Angela, Tyler, and Jessica!" Amariya pointed to each respective person, as she listed off their names. I did my best to commit their names and faces to my memory, but it had already been a _hell_ of a day.

Waving at the group, I slapped on my best smile, standing awkwardly at the table. Riya had already taken her seat when I finally found my voice. "Hi, hi. I'm Nova." My voice wavered slightly, but I breathed out a steady sigh of relief when it did not crack. That was the _worst._ Nothing screams _'Please don't look at me, I'm terrified' _more than a voice crack in an introduction. The five of them all looked very friendly and warm, which did wonders to calm my nerves.

"Welcome to Forks, Nova!" Jessica's excited voice _nearly_ grated at my ears, a sort of shrill, primness present in her voice. It took me a minute to get used to the sound, but I found it bothering me less as she carried on. "I hope you're _really_ into doing nothing all the time." Dark blue eyes rolled and fluttered slightly, as she twirled a piece of light brown hair between her fingers. A hearty chuckle bubbled up and out of her. "No, but seriously, I'm sorry you're stuck here with is. It's awful, I'm dead inside." She nodded seriously, face dead pan, her lips curved only slightly to smirk.

I found myself actually enjoying her spunky little attitude, and appreciating that she too spoke with heavy sarcasm. I pulled the chair nearest to me out, and sat down before responding. "No, I love being endlessly bored. It really does wonders for the wandering mind." Dramatically tossing my hair to the side, I finally cracked a smile of my own. The table hummed with laughter, and I felt my shoulders begin to relax. Amariya flashed me a proud grin, and I sent her a thankful one in return. Thank the stars for that girl, otherwise I'd still be standing alone, stuck in my mental prison.

"Honestly, I don't hear the accents!" The blonde boy, Mike, looked just as confused as I did when our eyes met. "I thought British people spoke all proper like? Pip pip, an' all that." Riya, Angela, and Eric all howled with laughter, at his piss poor English accent, holding their sides as they cackled. They obviously hadn't bothered to tell him Riya and I were _not_ from England. Jessica rolled her eyes heavily in his direction, shaking her head disapprovingly.

"Jesus, Mike, are you _high?_" Tyler asked, his shoulders pulling upward, a look of disappointment on his handsome face. Soft umber eyes scrunched up, as he ran a warm brown hand through his dark textured hair. "You've really gotta study more, man. You're gonna get benched at this rate." The table erupted with laughter again, Mike's face still plastered with confusion.

"What do you mean!?" Mike's eyebrows shot up, as he innocently demanded an explanation. Everyone else was too amused to offer one yet, as another bout of laughter danced around the table. I certainly wasn't going to be the one to break the news to him.

"Anywayyy," ignoring Mike, Eric chirped in, "Who's hype for La Push this weekend?!" His soft voice stretched out each word, dipping and raising his pitch in a curious way.

"Oh _hell_ yeah!" Jess sang out, and I turned to see her doing one of those cheesy 'raise the roof' motions, earning an amused eye roll from Angela.

The rest of the table broke out into excited murmuring, but I found myself only half listening, as my eyes began to drift around the cafeteria once more. Soon, I had tuned them out completely. My only thought, only _goal_ was to confirm that I hadn't been _tripping balls_ this morning. I needed some sort of confirmation that Jasper had really existed; Edward too.

I registered my sister's voice calling my name in the back of my head, but was too deep into my silly mission to comprehend it. Every face my eyes landed on was too plain, every iris too dull, every skin tone too _warm_ to be Jasper's. I found myself chewing my lower lip a bit harder than usual, frustration welling up within me.

It took a few sharp snaps from Amariya to shatter my concentration, but eventually I turned my dazed gaze toward my sister. "-ush with us on Saturday?" Was all I caught of my sister's question, my eyebrows knitting together as I tried to decipher it.

"Hmm, sorry! Sorry! What?" I had barely gotten the words out, when I felt something pull my attention to the back of the cafeteria. Eyes flickering toward the doors that led outside, my jaw fell slack, a trembling exhale rushing out of me all at once. Leaning against the space near the rear doors, one knee bent to rest his foot on the wall, stood the impossible boy from this morning. The decidedly _not_ imaginary boy, whose name had run through my head all day. A symphony of mixed emotions swelled inside me, cacophonous and alive. Within, my stomach took the opportunity to parkour off of my rib cage, somersaulting and bouncing around, in _sick_ flips. I could have sworn he was looking right at us, his golden eyes trained in my direction. I felt a dull heat fill my face, and pour down the rest of my body.

"-va? Novaaaa? He-llo!?" Riya's voice cut into my ears, and I snapped my head toward her. Emerald eyes boring into me, I noticed her sharp auburn eyebrows twitch in irritation. "Are you paying attention?"

"Sorry, it's been a weird day." I chewed my bottom lip again, using every ounce of willpower I had not to look away from her. My whole body screamed at me to find him again, to get up and go over to him, to thank him for this morning; but I knew if I got up and walked away from Amariya right now, she'd have an absolutely _nuclear_ meltdown. Being ignored was one of the few things that pissed my little sister off. "What did you say?"

"I said, do you want to..." Before she could finish, I felt a presence manifest behind me, a cold hand laying on my right shoulder. My heart sprang into my throat, it's rapid beating becoming increasingly faster, as I prayed to _every _conceivable deity imaginable that it belonged to who I thought it did. Amariya looked up past my head, her furious face growing puzzled before a placid look befell her.

Slowly, ever so _fucking_ slowly, I twisted my body to glance up at the person behind my view. Blue, hopeful, _pleading _eyes were met with dazzling, patient, golden ones. _Jasper..._ I could have splintered, and shattered into a million pieces right there. I could have turned to dust, and blown away on the wind, with how relieved I was. Lips parting to speak, I drew a quavering breath, but I couldn't find my voice.

I could have sworn I saw a smile dance across his pouted lips, before he spoke. "I see you made it to the cafeteria in one peace, miss." This time, I was certain of the smirk he wore as his deep, melodic voice kissed my ears. "Had me a bit worried this mornin'."

_Oh, fuck._ _Oh, sweet fuck._ A thousand thoughts crashed into me, a thousand feelings, a thousand waves of peace. Trying my absolute hardest to keep my shit together, I shifted my body in my seat, so that I was facing him. His skin still radiated a pleasant coolness, where his palm rested on my shoulder, even through the fabric of my shirt. "I got along just fine without you, _mister_." I couldn't help but genuinely smile as I playfully retorted, his soft eyes and bright laughter sending shockwaves through me.

I hadn't noticed the rest of the table gawking at us, mouths all hanging open in disbelief. I hadn't noticed the students at the surrounding tables doing the same. I hadn't noticed a God damn thing, except the pale white _knight _that stood before me. "I never doubted you, Nova." Jasper's lips drew into a sideways smirk, but his eyes reflected honesty. Something within me shifted, moved by his sincerity. "I was wonderin' if you wanted eat lunch with me," he paused for a moment, "and my family?" I sent him a curious look before he continued. "Edward thought you were quite amusin' this mornin', and Alice is dyin' to meet you." He explained with a slight shrug, soft Southern lilt swirling in the air around me.

"Of course!" I choked on my words, sputtering just slightly, "Of course, I'd love to meet the rest of them." I recovered smoothly, and moved to stand. Jasper's right hand slid from my shoulder delicately, fingers brushing against my palm. As I grabbed my bag, I turned to my sister, still wholly _oblivious_ to the fact that just about everyone in a ten foot radius was staring at me. "Sorry, Ri! Ask me after school, okay?" I sent her a stupid smile, turning toward Jasper again before she could reply. With another slanted smirk, he loosely took my hand. His fingers and thumb enveloped mine so slightly, that I wouldn't have registered his touch, if I hadn't felt the warmth in my own hand transferring to his chilly one.

In a nearly catatonic euphoria I was guided through a maze of tables, toward the back. The turning heads, and wondering stares had only just begun to register in my head, when we arrived at a table tucked quietly in the farthest corner of the cafeteria.

I was greeted with 4 _inhumanly_ _beautiful_ faces, one of which I had already seen this morning. I can only imagine I wore a mask of utter disbelief, because 3 of the 4 looked up at me with cheerful amusement. The one who wasn't impressed, was the _most _beautiful of the lot, besides Jasper. Long, straw blonde hair fell neatly around her heart shaped face, in soft curls. Dark gold eyes pierced mine, as she sat stoic, face sitting neutral in absolute disinterest. A wave of intimidation tore through me, before Jasper's voice distracted me once again. "Nova, this is my twin sister, Rosalie Hale." He shot Rosalie a look I couldn't decipher, staring her down until she relented. The blonde goddess rolled her eyes slightly, and took an irritated breath. A forced smile cracked over her marble smooth skin, as she acknowledged my presence.

"Hello." Even her short reply shook me to my core, her voice sounding just a smooth, and hypnotic as Jasper's. Next to her sat a curly haired boy, whose stocky body looked as though he should be a personal trainer, or professional linebacker. I mean, the dude was _jacked. _I couldn't help but wonder if he did anything other than hit the gym. He wore a kind expression, which banished any shred of intimidation the girl next to him had evoked in me. He _too_ had golden eyes.

"Hey, Nova! I'm Emmett." His sweet voice called out, a natural smile spreading, causing his dark eyebrows to tilt upward slightly. I smiled honestly, waving silently, still too nervous to say anything. _My voice will sound like a wounded wildebeest compared to this lot. Are they singers, or something? _A vision of the lot of them sitting around with acoustic guitars, singing 'Kumbaya' flashed into my head, and I couldn't help but clamp down on my lower lip to suppress a chuckle. _Absurd._

Laughing, for some reason, Edward tossed me a wave, before turning to look at the dark eyed pixie girl next to him. She was the only one of the lot with eyes that weren't bizarrely colored, though I swore I could detect a shimmer of gold in the darkness of her irises. "Nova, it's so nice to meet you!" The tiny beauty threw me a dazzling smile, and I thought for sure the brilliance of it would blind me. "I'm Alice Cullen!" I took her hand as she offered it to me, entirely unphased by the frigidness of it. I just assumed they _all_ had a circulation problem.

Finally, pathetically shyly, I spoke. "It's n-nice to m-meet you all." I stammered out. _Oh, real smooth, Nova. Bang up job! They're not going to eat you, for shit sake. Relax._ Edward's eyes lit up slightly, as he turned his attention back to me. I thought I could hear him snickering to himself. _I guess he just laughs a lot? For no reason?_ As if to answer my thought, Edward covered his mouth, turning his head toward Alice to chuckle under his breath.

I chewed my lip, feeling my whole body stiffen. _Is he... making fun of me?_ Suddenly, I felt a familiar sadness spread through my chest, and my eyes fell down to my feet. _Are they all just..._ My thought was interrupted by Edward's silken voice. "Nova," I moved my gaze upward upon hearing my name. Edward was looking up at me again. No, not at me. Edward was looking directly at Jasper, his face without a trace of amusement. I couldn't see Jasper's expression from where I stood, but they seemed to be having a silent conversation. "Please, have a seat." Edward spoke politely, gesturing to a free chair, his eyes finally meeting mine. As I sat, he offered me a gentle smile, kindness melting into his expression. "It's quite rare for new faces to show up around Forks. I'm sure you must be tired of the endless questioning." His voice was soft, and conveyed no sign of snark, or judgement. _I must have read him wrong. God, why am I like this?_

Breathing out a sigh of relief, followed by a short chuckle, I nodded. "It's _exhausting."_ I dragged out the words, letting my shoulders fall back into the chair just as Jasper took the seat next to me. I felt like a magnet, being pulled toward him, but resisted the urge to scoot closer with every fiber of my being. I did not, however, resist the urge to look over at him. As my head turned to my right, I found that Jasper was listening intently to me, hands folded neatly into his lap. As our eyes met, one of the corners of his lips curved slightly, his eyes warming, I swallowed butterflies, as I returned the soft smirk, and continued to speak. "I _literally _had to prove that New Hampshire was a state in one of my classes. Some kid didn't believe me. Like... _what_?" My face soured, and I held out a hand, gesturing my confusion. Laughter the siblings, save Rosalie, blessed my ears. I offered them my own nervous laughter in return, shaking my head.

As I glanced around the table, I noticed something that struck me as rather _odd._ Well, odder than the breathtaking beauty each of them possessed. Emmett and Rosalie's hands were woven together, as were Alice and Edward's. I'd certainly held hands with Amariya before, but this was... _different._ I didn't dare say anything about it, though. It wasn't my place to bring it up. After a few painfully awkward moments Jasper cleared his throat softly, removing his hands from his lap and placing them on the table in front of him. "Have you had your check up for your school records yet, Nova?" My eyes darted from the entwined hands on the table, to Jasper, curiosity etched into my face. "It's mandatory each year."

"Uh... nope. No, I haven't established a doctor here yet. I've only got here a week ago." My answer held traces of confusion, not understanding where he'd plucked the random question from.

"I only ask because Carlisle, our _adoptive_ father, is really the only doctor in town." As his voice drawled out, a light-bulb clicked on over my head. "You'll probably be meetin' him soon. I'll tell him to keep an eye out for you." I didn't even see his sly grin, my eyes already returning to his family in front of us.

"Oh, _duh._" I laughed as I placed a hand over my heart, feeling like a creep. "I assume you're all adopted, besides Rosalie and Jasper? That's why you three have different last names." With the exception of Rosalie, who was _entirely _ignoring my existence, they all nodded in amusement. "Gotchya." I clicked my tongue a bit, shooting little finger guns uncomfortably. "And that's why you look nothing alike." I nodded to myself. _Except for your sunshine eyes._

"Yes ma'am." Jasper's drawl thickened a bit, causing me to snap my attention back to him. "Rose and I are our adoptive mother Esme's niece and nephew. The rest of these _scoundrels_ share no blood, but took Carlisle's last name." His tone was light, but seemed off as the word blood left his mouth. I ignored it, content to watch him talk. "In fact, if you'd be willin', you could come meet Carlisle on Saturday. It's just so happens to be one of the rare occasions he won't be workin'. That way, he has a face to put to your name, an' all." As his eyes flickered between mine, and Edwards, I felt a heat sweep through my cheeks. Knowingly or not, Jasper had just invited me to his house. My fingers twitched softly in my lap, as a sweet sort of nervousness consumed me.

I turned my attention to his siblings, trying to gauge their reactions to his offer. They all wore pleasantly blank faces, with the exception of Rosalie, who was currently sending her twin a _nasty_ death glare. Ignoring the blonde girl's poison stare, fearing I may turn to stone if I caught it, I returned my full attention to Jasper. "S-sure." I gushed, trying so desperately to control my excitement at the prospect of spending even a fraction of a second outside of school with him. "I've got nothing better to do." I tried to play it cool. Tried, and failed. Clumsily, I fished for a pen from my bag, and took his hand in mine, all the while quaking internally. Uncapping the pen, I neatly wrote my cell number in the palm of his cool hand, curling his fingers shut around it when I was done. "Text me your address, and I'll stop by." Sending the most confident smile I could muster, I let my fingers linger on his a while longer, before returning the cap to my pen.

"Yes ma'am." A wide grin played across his lips, and I had to stop myself from drooling like a giddy idiot. "I'll be sure to do that." Fishing his phone out of his pocket, he fiddled with the touch screen for a moment, before entering my number into is contacts. I felt a little more than dumb for not just telling him my number out loud, but that washed away quickly as I felt my phone vibrate in my coat pocket. Gingerly searching for my cell, I slid the unlock screen, and peered down at the text message sitting in my inbox.

**_Unsaved Number: _**_3333 Quimby Street, Forks, Washington._

I didn't think my heart could take much more, as I felt it beating frantically within my chest. I saved his number to my contacts, and chewed my lip as I contemplated a reply.

**_Me:_** _Thank you! What time should I stop by?_

I heard his phone buzz softly, and tried to breathe as I listened to the soft padding of his fingers against the screen.

**_Jasper: _**_Whenever works for you, works for me, Miss Winter. I'd be glad to show you around town once you've met Carlisle, if you'd like._

**_Me:_** _Why, thank you, Mister Hale. I do so appreciate it. I'll text you when I wake up. :)_

I turned to watch him read my sarcastic reply, and met his gaze when he glanced over to me, another small chuckle breathing out of him. I opened my mouth to say something, just as the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch. Looking up to the clock, I sighed, not ready to pry myself away from the impossible boy quite yet. Longing had started to slither through my head, but was erased from existence, as I felt Jasper's cool hand on my shoulder once more. I hadn't even noticed him stand up. "Do you need an escort to your next class, miss? Or do you think you can make it on your own?"

I turned to offer him a real life sarcastic reply, but stopped short as I met his face. His honeysuckle curls fell freely around his chin as glanced down at me, and my breath caught in my throat. Taking a large gulp of air, I attempted to play off my nerves. "I think I can manage." That was all I could say, without tripping over my words, like a fawn on new legs. Moving to say goodbye to his siblings, I found the table empty. _What is with the vanishing act?_

Sunshine eyes shown down at me in amusement, accepting my reply. "See you 'round then, _darlin_'." His voice came softer now, just barely audible in the still crowded lunch room, and his hand pulled back from my shoulder, leaving a longing for his chilled touch in it's place. As he had this morning, he tossed me a friendly wave, and made his way toward the cafeteria doors.

_Lord, help me. This boy will be the death of me._

**Lord, help ME is more like it! :P**

**It's nearly 7 AM, my face is numb, and I've been writing since around midnight. I doubled my word count, at the sweet, sweet cost of my _slumber_. Womp wooooomp. **

**Anyway, let me know your thoughts on this chapter, and forgive me if there are any glaring errors. I've been awake for about 23 hours now, so if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go fall into a coma. See you in a few days, hopefully with another long ass chapter! **


	5. Lunch -- Jasper

**Jasper**

I lingered in the stairwell for a moment longer, before collecting myself from the heap I had crumpled to. I still couldn't pinpoint exactly _what_ was so special about Nova Winter, but I didn't have time enough to sort it out before my history class. Composing myself, I headed toward room 301. I didn't much feel like coming up with an excuse for tardiness, so I would have to table my maelstrom of questions for the moment. Even as I walked, however, my brain was trying to decode what had just happened; both with Nova, and within myself. _What made me open up so quickly to her? _ Anyone would tell you that I'm quite reserved. I like to keep to myself, even within my family. It's just easier that way, less messy, less complicated, less _emotional._

_Shit. _The last bell rang while I was still a good distance away from the classroom. Quickly glancing around, I made sure no one was looking, before taking off into a run. It wasn't my top speed, but would get me there _just_ in time. Normally, I wouldn't run at such a speed within the school, but _normally_ I didn't have to walk someone else to class. I made it through the door just in time, with Mrs. Weston in tow, taking a seat next to Edward and setting my bag down on the floor.

Edward shot me a beguiling look, thin lips pulled tight into a charming smile. "What?" I quirked an eyebrow at him, voice whispering out at an inhuman range. He would have been the only one able to hear me. Edward opened his mouth to speak, but shut it again after a moment, shrugging his shoulders at me. I could _feel_ his amusement, radiating off of him, and slamming into me in waves. "_What, Edward?"_ I growled, not amused by his little game.

"Nothing, Jazz. It's just unusual to see you so friendly with humans." His soft reply sounded almost _giddy _to my trained ears.

Furrowing my brow, I looked away from him, unsure of how to respond. I was still trying to work it out in my own head, but now that Edward was within such close proximity to me, I didn't feel comfortable doing so.

Trying to change the subject, I spoke without looking at him. "By the way, what was so funny this morning?" I asked, clasped hands lingering casually in front of my mouth, so Mrs. Weston wouldn't see my moving lips.

Peering over to my brother, I saw another tight smirk pull across his lips. Raising his eyebrows, as he so often did when amused, he glanced over to me. "She thinks interesting thoughts." I held my face blank, waiting for him to continue. _Interesting how?_ I hadn't spoken this aloud, knowing Edward would hear me anyway. Hesitating a moment longer, he laughed to himself, before answering my question.

"She's funny, Jasper, that's all I'm saying. Her thoughts are very candid, even for a human. It's better if you don't know _exactly_ what she was thinking." Knowing Edward wasn't going to give specifics infuriated me for a moment, but I reigned myself in quickly. I didn't need to slip up, and have the whole classroom suddenly at war because I felt such a strong emotion. That would be the price for my loss of control.

We sat in silence for the rest of the class, pretending to pay attention to the words coming out of our teacher's mouth. Every once in a while, I would jot down a note, just to go through the motions.

Class was over in a flash, 45 minutes feeling like 45 seconds, and I made my way to the next one, thankful to get out of range of my brother's gift. Now that Edward was far enough away, I could try to process what I was feeling.

_Nova Winter._ Her name echoed in my head, a strange emotion ruminating in my gut. _What makes her different?_ I thought perhaps it was her face; A face that took the breath I didn't have away. _No, it's more than that. The way I feel her so strongly... _Truly, the girl's emotions had hit me like a freight train. The way her panic washed over me like tidal waves had nearly knocked me off of my feet. _Why is she hurting so much? Why does she carry that weight? How?_ I had gotten the feeling that Nova felt the way she had been when we'd crashed into each other rather often. _What could cause such a young woman so much pain?_

As I stepped into the hallway, I reached into my pocket for my phone. The smooth metal of the device still felt foreign to my fingers, modern technology not really being my area of expertise. I dialed the number before I even thought about it, pressing the odd little device to my ear.

"Yes, Jasper?" A voice like tinkling bells, distorted by the grain of a microphone, greeted me.

"Alice, I wanted to talk to you about something." I spoke quietly, not wanted to garner any attention from passing students.

"I know." I could hear her grinning ear to ear, her devilish little pixie smile plastered knowingly across her face.

"Of course you do." Rolling my eyes, I continued. "Have you seen anything lately? Anything pertaining to me?"

"I might have." A little giggle floated through the receiver, irritating me slightly. This meant she _had_ seen something, or some things.

"And I assume you're not going to tell me?"

"I don't want to interfere with your life, Jazz." The use of my nickname only served to further irritate me. "You know I'll tell you the things you need to know, when you _need_ to know them."

"Well, this is me telling you I _need_ to know what you saw." I knew begging never worked with Alice, but damn if I wasn't going to try.

"I'm not saying anything right now. It's better if I don't tell you what I saw just yet." She paused for a moment, before letting another cute little giggle escape. "She's really beautiful, Jasper. I cant wait to meet her."

My grip on my phone tightened slightly, as I pushed the phone closer to my ear. I had heard her correctly. "I knew it! Please, tell me something, _anything._ I'm going insane over here, Alice!" I whispered harshly.

"You wanna know something funny? You lose your accent when you're being serious. It's kinda cute!" A small growl bubbled in my throat, my irritation reaching new levels. "Jeez, Jazz, lighten up!"

I closed my eyes, trying to calm myself down. "You're really not gonna tell me anythin'?" I laid my accent on thick, trying my hardest to persuade her.

"Oh, fine." I could tell she was rolling her eyes at me. "I'll tell you one thing, but only because you're my favorite brother." Her tone turned serious now, as I listened as closely as I could. "I'm not going into specifics, and I'm not telling you what I've seen, but..." Alice paused. _Always with the dramatics._ "You're going to be very close with her, Jasper." Her voice was soft, and sincere.

I took a deep, useless breath, and sighed. I wasn't sure if it was a sigh of relief, or concern. "Close? That's all you're givin' me?"

"Patience, sweetheart. I look forward to meeting her soon." With that, she hung up. I placed my phone back in my pocket, and ran a hand through my tousled hair.

_We're going to be close. What am I supposed to do with that?_ Sometimes, I really hated having a psychic best friend.

* * *

As the lunch bell rang, I felt a small tremor of excitement whirl through my stomach. I wanted so desperately to see the strange human again. _My human._ The thought send a shiver of unease down my spine, a chill that didn't quite sit right with me. _What does that even mean, Jasper?_

Pushing the thought aside, I headed toward the cafeteria. The smell of human food never bothered me, but so many people in one place _absolutely_ did. It wasn't so much the scent of _gallons _of human blood, rather the chaotic web of emotion I would have to slog through. Most days I didn't even bother going to the lunch room, but I knew my best bet of seeing Nova again resided there.

Once I had arrived in the cafeteria, I placed myself toward the back entrance. The soldier in me always liked to have an escape route in mind, if things ever went south. I hadn't fought a war in years, but the habits I'd picked up during my time as a Confederate soldier never left me. Most of 'em anyway. My position in the back also gave me a clear view of the rest of the lunch room. If Nova were there, I'd see her easily. Though, I'd probably smell her before I saw her. Venom began to pool in my mouth at the recollection of her scent, but I quickly pushed it down my throat. _She's not a meal. Not for me. Not for anyone._ My eyes grew dark, closing themselves, as if to stave off the thought.

Before I had a chance to think on such atrocities, however, my nose was blessed with the sweetest smell, nostrils flaring greedily. _Patchouli. Sandalwood. Sweet Smoke. Pomegranate. Lilacs in full bloom._

Eyes snapping open again, I scanned the room quickly. I couldn't see her yet, but she couldn't have been too far off. I wasn't even sure how to approach her; It wasn't exactly every day I interacted with humans. Hell, I did my best to avoid them. Still, I couldn't stop the nervous excitement from buzzing in my brain. _Where is she?_ I had barely finished my thought when I was hit with a wall of strong emotion. _Anxiousness. Sadness. Self loathing. Loneliness. Panic... _The heavy emotions broke over me, causing a dry hitch in my throat. The feelings were so palpable and overwhelming, I knew it had to be Nova.

Frantically, I tried to find her face in the crowd, wanting nothing more than to calm her. Then suddenly, as if they hadn't existed at all, the feelings stopped, and all I could feel was a whisper of _numbness_. When my gaze finally caught Nova, she was standing still, staring blankly into nothing. I could just barely see the top of her head, down to her nose, the rest of her obscured by the crowd. I did my best to zero in on her, trying to understand why she'd gone from such powerful negative emotions, to a tingling void.

I realized then, that she was't present in her body. Physically she was there, but mentally she was gone. Just gone. _Nova... What's wrong with her?_ For a moment, I considered going to her. I considered running to her side, scooping her up, and taking her far away from here. Somewhere she would be safe, and happy, and comfortable. _Where did she go? Why is she so far away?_

Before I had the chance to move to her, and satiate my overbearing need to protect Nova from whatever was bothering her, I felt her return to herself. Rather, I felt her emotions flood back into her at breakneck speeds. _Fear. Panic. Recognition. Realization. Calm. Embarrassment. Appreciation._ When Nova finally relaxed, I felt my own body ease itself of it's mounted tension.

As more students sat down, my view of Nova cleared. I could see a red haired girl standing in front of her, holding tightly to Nova's hands. I watched as the girl guided Nova to a table, and listened as she introduced her friends. I was familiar with their faces, but hadn't known any of their names. Seeing her interact with her new friends, made some part of me warm again, nearly mimicking a heartbeat inside my cold chest. The way she spoke so freely, the way her nose scrunched when she laughed, the way her warm hands would tuck strands of hair behind her ears, the way she chewed her lower lip... All of those little quirks tried in vain to make my heart beat. _She doesn't need me. Look at how alive she is... The last thing she needs is a monster like me. What could I ever hope to offer such a lovely little thing?_

I had been contemplating heading to my usual spot with my siblings, when something caught my attention. Rather, two words. _La Push._ I swore I'd heard them. I had been so caught up in my own head, I wasn't sure if I was correct. Leaning a bit closer, I trained my ears on Nova's table. "Do you wan't to go to La Push with us on Saturday?" The girl with the red hair spoke, but Nova's concentration had started to wander, causing the red haired girl to snap sharply. _Fuck. La Push, god damn it. Of all places..._

"Hmm, sorry! Sorry! What?" Nova's smooth alto timbre floated into my ears, as her eyes met the girl's. _She didn't hear her... _ As the words left her lips though, her attention began to drift again, and I found her eyes on mine. When our eyes locked, I felt a rush of emotion drain out of her, and fill my head completely. _Relief. Excitement. Joy. Calm. Nervousness. Sweetness. Longing. _My head spun, world tilting away from me for a moment, the scent of her slamming into me as she blushed. _Longing? _

I didn't have time to decipher all of her emotions, and I certainly didn't have time to bask in her intoxicating smell. _Go to her! Don't let her hear the question again. Don't let her get mixed up with the wolves. _

Moving quickly, at the most human pace I could muster, I made my way toward the table. I arrived behind Nova, just as the red haired girl had started her question over. The red haired girl glared up at me, disdain dripping from her. Offering the friendliest smile I could gather, I calmed the fiery haired one, and placed my hand on Nova's shoulder.

As Nova slowly turned to face me, I was once again steamrolled with emotion. _Relief. The must sincere relief, pushed forward by longing. _Somewhere inside of me, I felt my own longing pushing through, driven by the same relief. Now that she was before me, I didn't bother to ask why. I didn't bother to hide my own feelings from her, and let her feel them in return.

* * *

I led Nova to the back of the cafeteria, our hands carefully joined. Fearful that I might not be able to resist the urge to crush her to my side, I was barely touching her, but it was enough to satisfy my need to feel her warmth. The heat of her skin pulsed into me, blocking out all other thoughts. Her delicate hand clung to mine, as her heart beat a little too quickly.

_Excitement. Joy. Disbelief._ Nova's emotions poured into me, filling every corner of my body. When my family came into view, her heart rate climbed, as did her anxiety. I found myself feeling anxious too. I hadn't planned on bringing her to meet them yet, but I was desperate to stop her from going to La Push at all costs.

I knew the only one likely to have a problem with me bringing a human to the table was Rosalie. As we approached, I caught Edward's gaze, knowing he would be able to hear my thoughts from here. _I need you to tell Rosalie to behave._ Nodding slightly, he turned to our sister, quietly informing her of what was about to happen.

Rose's glare was deadly, even from this distance, and I could hear a low growl rumbling through her. I shot her a warning look, and the sound subsided. _Tell her to leave if she doesn't want to do this._ Edward conveyed the information, but Rosalie didn't budge, her jaw set tightly.

As we finally reached the table, I stood just to the side of Nova, our hands still barely touching. I watched as Nova took in the sight of my brothers and sisters, her mouth falling slack just slightly. Biting my cheek to stifle laughter, I turned my gaze to Rosalie. Dark amber eyes were boring holes into Nova's sweet face, and I could feel intimidation tearing away at the poor girl's chest. "Nova, this is my twin sister, Rosalie Hale." I let myself move closer, instinctively wanting to protect her.

"Hello." Rose finally spoke, her irritation burning away at me as she did. Thankfully, the hardest part was over. Rosalie was the only one who would treat Nova so coldly.

"Hey, Nova! I'm Emmett." Emmett's voice broke my glare away from Rose, taking with it the poisonous sting of Rosalie's attitude. Nova's face brightened as she waved slightly to my brother, relief washing over her.

I heard Edward laugh, my eyes snapping to him as he tossed Nova a wave of his own. I wondered what she had been thinking, once again jealous that I couldn't see into her mind like my brother could.

"Nova, it's so nice to meet you!" Alice gave Nova the warmest greeting, smiling from ear to ear as she offered her hand. "I'm Alice Cullen!" I felt Nova's confusion as she shook my sister's hand. I knew she must have wondered why we were all so cold. Inwardly, I prayed she didn't question it further.

"It's n-nice to m-meet you all." Nova stuttered, embarrassment swirling around her. Before I could calm her though, I heard Edward's laughter once more. Suddenly, I was kicked violently in the chest, a twelve ton brick of emotion crushing me, as Edward's sorry eyes met mine_. Shame. Self loathing. Self Doubt. Anxiety. Sadness, deep and all consuming._ I growled lowly, knowing Nova wouldn't be able to pick it up. _God damn it, Edward. Fix it._

"Nova." Edward's gaze was still on me, an expression of guilt etched into his face. "Please, have a seat." As she sat, I felt relief wash over her. "It's quite rare for new faces to show up around Forks. I'm sure you must be tired of the endless questioning."

"It's _exhausting._" Her shoulders fell back in a dramatic display as I sat next to her. I couldn't help but chuckle softly at her quirky behavior. Somewhere in the pit of my stomach, I felt tiny butterflies dancing around again, but this time I wasn't sure if they were hers, or my own. When her eyes met mine again, I felt them multiply, little butterfly wings stirring up hurricanes within me. Her flowery lips spread into a small smile, as she continued. "I _literally_ had to prove that New Hampshire was a state in one of my classes. Some kid didn't believe me. Like... _what?_" When her nose scrunched up, causing little wrinkles over her delicate skin, something inside my chest pulsated. I swore, for a moment, my heart had a beat.

There was something so beautiful about the way she portrayed herself. I knew this girl felt so broken, so dismal and defeated, and yet she did everything she could to push through it. Everything was constantly emotionally crashing around her, and somehow she still managed to shine so brightly. I was lost in her, for a moment, consumed by a need to know why she was who she was. What made Nova, Nova?

I had been contemplating how something so fragile could be so strong, when I realized her attention was focused on something, a peculiar confusion sinking in. Azure eyes were darting between my siblings, and as I turned to follow her gaze, I realized what she had been so perplexed about.

It dawned on me then. The interlocked hands of my "brothers and sisters" were certainly not something she would have expected. Nova had no idea we were "adopted." Of course, why would she have? I'd only just met her, how could I have forgotten that? What was I supposed to tell her? How would she react? And then it hit me, and everything fell into place.

I cleared my throat unnecessarily, to turn her attention to me, moving hands I had unconsciously placed into my lap to the table. I had to go about this delicately, all of it. "Have you had your check up for your school records yet, Nova?" Her gaze flickered to mine. "It's mandatory each year." I could feel Rosalie's glare on me again, but I ignored it, waiting for Nova to speak.

"Uh... nope. No, I haven't established a doctor here yet. I only got here a week ago."

Silently thanking the stars for such a stroke of luck, I addressed her lingering confusion. "I only ask because Carlisle, our _adoptive_ father, is really the only doctor in town. You'll probably be meetin' him soon. I'll tell him to keep an eye out for you." I couldn't help my grin as I saw the dots connecting in her head.

"Oh, _duh._" She placed a hand over her heart, and sighed softly. I melted a little at the sight. _Focus._ "I assume you're all adopted, beside Rosalie and Jasper? That's why you three have different last names. Gotchya." I could barely contain myself, the humor of the situation not lost on me, and her little finger pistols were the cutest thing I'd ever seen. "And that's why you look nothing alike."

"Yes ma'am. Rose and I are our adoptive mother Esme's niece and nephew. The rest of these _scoundrels_ share no blood, but took Carlisle's last name." I steeled myself for what I was about to do, knowing full well that Rosalie would be inconsolably _pissed_ about the proposition I was about to make. "In fact, if you'd be willin', you could come meet Carlisle on Saturday. It just so happens to be one of the rare occasions he won't be workin'."

I could sense all eyes land on mine, and heard Rosalie's deep, angry growling in her throat. Confusion from all parties assaulted me, the strongest being Nova's. "That way, he has a face to put to your name, an' all." My eyes landed on Edward, speaking to him inwardly, so only he could hear. _I'll explain fully later, just trust me on this one. Please._ He nodded once, sharply, and turned to speak to Alice in their special, silent way.

I held my breath as Nova blushed, her scent overpowering me at such a close range. God damn if she wasn't going to drive me insane with that impossibly beautiful smell. "S-sure." Nova's excitement was tangible to all, the power of empathy not needed to feel it. "I've got nothing better to do." There it was, that adorable attitude of hers, trying to act un-phased by anything. It never ceased to amuse me.

Suddenly, she was rummaging through her bag; After a few moments of hasty searching, she withdrew a pen, and took my cold hand in her tiny warm ones. I tiled my head in confusion, as she wrote something on my left palm, the tip of the pen licking at my skin. When she was done, I caught a glimpse of the number she had written, before she curled my fingers down onto my palm again. If I had been able to blush, I would have been the color of blood itself. "Text me your address, and I'll stop by."

"Yes ma'am." I was grinning like a damn fool, when she capped the pen, nearly drunk on some emotion I wasn't familiar with. "I'll be sure to do that." Immediately pulling my phone from my pocket, entering her number into the device. I made sure to wash away her embarrassment, as I texted her the house's address.

We shared a few more messages privately, before the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch. I cursed time for being so cruel, as I stood to gather my things. Nova had been lost in thought, as I placed my hand on her shoulder, needing one more pull from her warmth before leaving her. "Do you need an escort to your next class, miss? Or do you think you can make it on your own?"

When her face tilted up to mine, I felt her. Deep, _deep_ down in the heels of my feet, buzzing like little honey bees. _Curiosity. Longing. Desire._ The emotions overtook me briefly, and I nearly crumbled for the second time today. _Shit, get it together._ "I think I can manage." Her sarcastic reply pulled me back to myself, and I thanked her inwardly. A part of me wanted to protest, to spend another precious few moments with my human. _My human._

I couldn't force myself on her. I couldn't and wouldn't ever make her do anything she didn't want to do. A part of me knew she'd been made to do things she hadn't wanted to before. I would never, _ever_ be the one to make her feel that way. No matter how much it ate away at me. "See you 'round then, _darlin'._" I spoke softly, mostly to myself, as I accepted her refusal of a guide. Taking in her warmth a moment more, I turned, letting my hand slip away from her shoulder.

My feet pushed me toward my next class, but my mind was busy deciphering the codex of emotions, and thoughts that whipped around within me. _Darlin'... Darlin'? Jasper Hale doesn't call people darlin'. What the hell is happening to me?_

"No, but I'm sure Jasper Whitlock did." I had been so consumed with inside my head, I hadn't noticed Edward leaning against the wall at the end of the hallway. His arms were folded neatly over his chest, face proudly displaying a shit eating grin.

I stopped dead in my tracks, eyes darting own the hall to greet his. "What?" Thankfully, there was no one around to notice us having an impossibly distant conversation. Edward blinked to my side, arms crossing over his chest again as his head tilted to the side.

"I said I'm sure Jasper Whitlock did." He repeated himself, looking as amused as ever.

"Jasper Whitlock is dead." My response sounded cold even to my own ears, as I crossed my own arms defensively.

"Is he?" Edward's cocky smile only served to make me frown.

I had no chance to reply before Edward was gone from my sight, darting down the hallway and into a stairwell. _What the hell is that supposed to mean?_ Grumbling for a moment, I decided to ignore my brother's rambling, and continue to class. _Between Edward, and Alice, I'm getting a little tired of this cryptic nonsense._

I was barely through the doorway of my pottery class, when I locked amber eyes with glaring green ones. There, in the front of the class, sitting next to the _only_ available seat, sat the fiery haired girl I'd stolen Nova away from.

_Shit._

* * *

**Ugh, sorry it took so long! I've had horrible writer's block, on top of being a busy bitch, lmao. ****Anyway, thank you so much for reading, and as always I appreciate any and ALL feedback!**

**I struggled a whole lot with this chapter, which is partly why it took me so long to write. Every time I sat down to work on it I found myself hating whatever I was writing. I don't particularly like my portrayal of Jasper, and would love any insight on how you feel about it. Maybe I'm just being a negative Nancy over here.**

**Also, THANK YOU to the three people who have reviewed so far!  
TalkingChaos - I love Jasper x OC fics too. Any Jasper fic really, because _mmmfffff._**** I hope you like how the story is playing out!  
WolfChildofGod05 - Jasper is my favorite Cullen sibling too, and overall character in general! He is absolutely SMOKIN'! I hope you're enjoying it so far!  
Guest - I'm sad I can't shout you out directly, but whoever you are, I greatly appreciate the review! I'm glad you like it so much, and I'm extra _extra_ glad you're interested in Nova's story. I based Nova off of myself mostly, at least personality wise, so it's really flattering that you're interested in her development!  
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**Alright, now I'm gonna go crawl into bed and try to sleep. Hopefully I'll have the next chapter up within a reasonable amount of time! The next one is Amariya's POV, so get ready for some tongue lashing sass. Then we're going to La Push, babyyyy! ;)**


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